


3,000 Miles

by worrisomeme



Series: Do You Wanna Date my Avatar? [2]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel
Genre: Alternate Universe, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Thanksgiving
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-15
Updated: 2018-06-27
Packaged: 2019-01-17 20:51:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12373806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/worrisomeme/pseuds/worrisomeme
Summary: “So,” Bucky starts with a mischievous grin. It’s mid-October and he and Steve are Skyping on a Saturday while Steve sketches and Bucky grades papers. Or, at least, he’s supposed to be grading papers. He can’t quite focus on school work when his mind is buzzing with possibilities.“So?” Steve asks, glancing over from the second monitor he’s working on. He knows that tone.“So I was thinking…” he trails off, that smirk growing on his face.“We can’t have Skype sex right now,” Steve replies flatly, eyes shifting back to his work even as a smirk curls up at the corner of his mouth. “Maybe after I finish this piece.”Bucky snorts and rolls his eyes fondly. “That’s not what I was thinking,” he says, leaning back in his chair.





	1. Chapter 1

During the last days of Steve’s trip they take about a million cheesy pictures together between the two of their phones. Lying in bed together, Steve on Bucky’s chest. Them in bed with mugs of coffee, grinning with crazy bedhead. Them on the couch watching a movie. Touristy pictures on the Brooklyn Bridge and all over New York. Kissy pictures of varying degrees of decency. Steve takes a couple pictures of their hands laced between their legs on the couch and posts one to Instagram captioned “date night with the boy” - and then has to post a couple of their selfies together when he gets about a million comments asking for face pics.

It’s heaven. It’s everything Bucky’s ever wanted in a relationship. And it’s coming to an end.

The brunet sighs heavily as they step through the airport doors.

“I know,” Steve says with a sigh of his own, turning to face his boyfriend.

“I’m going to miss you,” Bucky says with a wry grin.

“I’m gonna miss you too,” the blond replies, pressing up to his tip-toes. He takes Bucky’s face in his hands and nuzzles their noses together before kissing him softly. “We’ll make it work,” he assures him.

“We’ll make it work,” Bucky repeats, smiling now as he presses his forehead to the younger man’s. “Let me know when you make it home safe, okay?”

“I will,” Steve promises, kissing him one more time. “And you do the same, even though you’re not going as far,” he says with a giggle.

“I will,” Bucky chuckles, ruffling Steve’s hair. He wraps the blond up in his arms and lifts him off his feet as he kisses him slowly and sweetly. “See you soon,” he says softly when he sets the smaller man back down on his own feet.

“See you soon,” Steve replies, his voice dreamy and his cheeks pink. And then he’s grabbing his stuff and heading to check in.

Bucky hangs back and watches him for as long as he can before heading back to his apartment.

 

*

 

Bucky’s browsing Tumblr and he sees a post from Steve. It’s got screenshots of about a fucking million asks that all have some variation of “You guys are so cute!!!!” and “Awwh you guys are long-distance?” and “Damn. Sorry. That sucks.”

[ **Bucky:** Didn’t realize I was dating someone so famous ;P]

He chuckles to himself as he sends it, wondering what in the hell Steve posted that prompted such a ridiculous amount of responses. Shit, he’s lucky to get in the double digits on his personal posts.

He’s scrolling for a while when he finally finds the post everyone is talking about – a picture of them cuddled up in bed, Bucky kissing his forehead, and it’s captioned ‘why do you have to live 3000 miles away?’

[ **Steve:** Better get used to it ;P]

[ **Steve:** You’re getting to be pretty famous here too :P]

[ **Bucky:** Only because you keep putting my face all over your tumblr and insta ;P]

Bucky’s phone rings about two seconds later, Steve’s face lighting up the screen.

“Hey, do you not want me putting pictures of your face up?” Steve asks the second Bucky picks up, not even giving him a chance to greet him. “Because I can totally take them down. I can just put up vague artsy pictures like our hands and us silhouetted and stuff so we’re not actually visible. I didn’t even ask. I’m so sorry Bucky,” he rambles.

Bucky’s muffling laughter, letting his boyfriend finish his thought, before he says, “Stevie, Stevie, calm down.”

“Sorry, sorry,” Steve mutters, laughing softly at how worked up he managed to get himself in such a short period of time.

“It’s okay,” Bucky laughs, shaking his head a little. “I don’t mind babe. It’s gonna be kinda weird, take some getting used to and all, but I don’t mind. I would have said something if I did.”

Steve breathes out a sigh of relief. “Okay, good. I just suddenly realized I hadn’t even asked and my heart about stopped.”

“You’re the cutest,” Bucky teases the blond.

Steve scoffs and Bucky can practically hear his blush. “So how was work?” he changes the subject.

 

*

 

Bucky thunks his bag down next to his desk after a long day of classes. His roster this semester is great, really. The kids are great too. He can joke with them easily and they’re catching on quick. But today he’s tired and missing his boyfriend. Nico had gone on and on about how the _awesome_ Steve Rogers was doing a livestream later, a sneak peek at some concept art he’ll be working on for the second Avengers game, so he knows he probably shouldn’t call him just yet.

Instead he flips open his laptop and pulls up the stream.

“Yeah,” Steve is saying when it loads, “we’re introducing a whole bunch of new characters this game! I really think you guys are going to love them.”

And just hearing the blond’s voice has him relaxing. He can’t help but laugh, though, when Steve finally zooms out of working on a detail and the character looks just similar enough to Bucky that he recognizes himself in it.

[ **Bucky** : Hey, who’s that handsome stud?] he sends through the chat.

As soon as Steve notices the comment he lets out a loud, surprised laugh.

“Oh shit guys,” he says as he zooms in on a different detail this time and gets back to work, “looks like my boyfriend’s joined us. Now you can ask _him_ all those invasive questions you’ve been sending to my Tumblr about him. Hi baby,” he coos teasingly.

[ **Bucky:** You didn’t answer my question ;P]

Steve laughs again and zooms back out, pausing so everyone can get a look. “This handsome stud is the Winter Soldier,” he says, and Bucky can hear the blush in his voice. “You guys remember Captain America? From the first game?” Bucky does. It had dropped not long after he and Steve started talking and he’d teased Steve about the character relentlessly. “The Soldier is his best friend. There’s a whole side story involving him in this one that’s totally awesome.”

Oh, and if Steve thought the Captain America teasing had been bad, he’s never going to hear the end of this one.

 

*

 

“What do you mean you’ve never watched Grey’s Anatomy?!” Bucky practically shrieks. They’re on one of those dual-streaming websites for long distance friends and couples, trying to decide what to watch. When Bucky had excitedly announced that the new season was finally up on Netflix, Steve had scrunched up his face and said he’d never seen the show.

“I dunno,” Steve squeaks back, his voice up an octave, shrugging, his hands up defensively. “Isn’t that show, like, up there with Desperate Housewives?”

Bucky gasps melodramatically, clasping a hand over his heart, and booms, “Steven Grant Rogers how fucking dare you!” He pulls out his phone and opens Tumblr (a site he’s been much more active on lately thanks to Steve), threatening, “I’m making a callout post right the fuck now.”

Steve laughs and rolls his eyes, slouching in his chair. “You’re an ass,” he teases.

Bucky flashes a crooked grin as he sets his phone down and looks back up to the little screen showing Steve inside of the Netflix screen. “ _You’re_ an ass,” he shoots back playfully. “Comparing Grey’s to Desperate Housewives,” he shakes his head. “It’s _amazing_ and Ellen Pompeo is a goddess.” He’s already clicking on the Grey’s Anatomy icon and finding Season 1 in the dropdown menu.

Steve only laughs harder, rolling his eyes again. “Alright babe, whatever you say.”

“Just wait. In a couple hours you’ll be thanking me for this.”

“You’re lucky you’re so cute,” Steve teases him, a smirk on his lips.

Bucky just sticks his tongue out at the blond and clicks play. “And then,” he goes on, ignoring his boyfriend, “in a couple of seasons you’re going to _hate_ me.”

 

 

*

 

“So,” Bucky starts with a mischievous grin. It’s mid-October and he and Steve are Skyping on a Saturday while Steve sketches and Bucky grades papers. Or, at least, he’s supposed to be grading papers. He can’t quite focus on school work when his mind is buzzing with possibilities.

“So?” Steve asks, glancing over from the second monitor he’s working on. He knows _that_ tone.

“So I was thinking…” he trails off, that smirk growing on his face.

“We can’t have Skype sex right now,” Steve replies flatly, eyes shifting back to his work even as a smirk curls up at the corner of his mouth. “Maybe after I finish this piece.”

Bucky snorts and rolls his eyes fondly. “That’s _not_ what I was thinking,” he says, leaning back in his chair. “Not that I’d mind or anything,” he adds, winking at his boyfriend when he glances his way. Steve laughs and flips him off and he can’t help but giggle, holding his hands up in surrender. “Alright, alright. _Anyway_ , I was thinking, Thanksgiving break is in a couple weeks. Maybe I can take that time to come visit you. It’s not like I have family to spend it with.”

“I think Nat would beg to differ on that one,” Steve says, glancing over just long to give him an amused ‘you know I’m right’ look.

Bucky laughs and rests his hands behind his head. “Well, look, yeah, I’ll give you that one,” he says, propping his feet up on his desk. “But you know what I mean. It won’t break their hearts or anything. They’ll understand.” He blushes and drops his feet, running a hand through his hair as the other comes to rest on his thigh. “Unless you don’t want me to?” he says it hesitantly, like a question.

“No, no!” Steve’s head snaps to meet Bucky’s gaze on the screen and his eyes are concerned. “That’s not what I meant. I would _love_ to see you again. I do have to warn you though, me and my LA friends all meet at someone’s house each year and do Thanksgiving together. This year is my place. So if you wouldn’t mind my crazy friends I would love to have you.” He’s smiling from ear to ear by the end of it, thinking about seeing the brunet in person again.

“I think I can handle your friends,” Bucky replies, his grin matching his boyfriend’s. He shoves aside the papers he was trying to grade and pulls up a couple of travel sites. “I’ll buy the tickets right now.”

Steve lets out a little excited noise and his smile widens as he goes back to his work. “I’m so fucking excited now,” he says with a giggle.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanksgiving break!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG GUYS I am _so_ sorry this one took so damn long!! I just got stuck _so_ bad with the Thanksgiving dinner thing! But here it is!! Thank you all for being so patient!!! <3 <3 <3

Bucky gets off and the plane and he’s in denial about why he’s shaking like a leaf. He rushes down to baggage claim and there stands his little blond god, face buried in his phone. This is only their second time being together in person and he’s equal parts excited and nervous as he sneaks up on his boyfriend.

He wraps his arms around the younger man from behind and lifts him up, giggling as he spins him around in a couple circles. Steve lets out a yelp and squirms the whole time, laughing even as he protests. People are staring, some with smiles, some with glares, but Bucky just can’t bring himself to care.

“Let me down!” he whines, playfully smacking the brunet’s arms around his waist. “Bucky Barnes you’re the worst!”

Bucky finally complies, still laughing as he leans around to kiss Steve’s cheek. The smaller man turns in his arms and beams up at him. He leans up on his tip-toes to press a kiss to his lips, hands resting against Bucky’s chest.

“Missed you,” he says against his boyfriend’s lips.

Bucky steals another kiss and nuzzles their noses together. “Missed you too.”

Finally Bucky pulls himself away, just long enough to grab his bag from the conveyor. He laces his fingers with Steve’s and they make their way out to the parking lot.

“Y’know,” the brunet says, squinting as he looks around (he suddenly regrets packing his sunglasses away), “I’ve never been to California before.”

“Boy are you in for a treat,” Steve says, voice dripping with sarcasm. He slides his sunglasses down over his eyes as they make their way to his car. Bucky doesn’t even own a damn car. LA is weird.

“I’ll tell you what though,” he says, “I’m gonna miss this weather when I get back to New York.” He tugs his hoodie off and even in just his jeans and t-shirt he’s suddenly wishing he’d changed.

They climb into the car and sit in silence for the first couple of minutes, Steve just letting Bucky take in the surroundings. It might not be New York, but it is beautiful. Bucky has to give it that. And he’s grateful for how quickly his nerves have settled. They’re not even back to Steve’s house yet and already he’s feeling like they were never apart.

“So,” Steve says finally, reaching a hand out and taking Bucky’s, “my friend Sam and his husband Riley have _insisted_ they treat us to dinner tonight. I told them you’d probably want a quiet night in and they’d meet you on Thanksgiving, but Sam in particular would not have it.”

“I mean,” Steve goes on rambling and Bucky fights the laughter that threatens to bubble up at how fucking adorable his boyfriend is, “if you have a problem with it I can obviously tell him to fuck off. But I figured it really wasn’t _that_ big of a deal. And it’s just dinner anyway and it’s free food so-“

“Stevie, it’s okay,” Bucky says, finally unable to control his laughter. “I don’t mind. We can go to dinner. He sounds like he’d get along real well with Tash, frankly.”

Steve blushes and chuckles quietly, glancing over to the brunet briefly. “Yeah, we should probably never get those two together,” he says.

He pulls into a driveway and Bucky just now looks around at their surroundings again. The houses on this street are… well, they’re… large.  Mansions compared to where he grew up. His eyes widen a little as he looks at the house whose driveway they’re pulling into. It’s not a celebrity house or anything, nothing ridiculous, but it _is_ big. Nice. Modern. All glass and clean lines or whatever architects say.

“This is… yours?” he asks with wide eyes.

Steve blushes again and shrugs a shoulder, laughing nervously. “They, uh, they compensate _well_ at Shield,” he says. They park in the garage and Steve hops out and grabs Bucky’s bags before the older man has a chance to. “Besides,” he goes on as he lets them into the house, “your place isn’t exactly a slum either.”

“No, no, you’re right,” Bucky says, trying to steal his bags back all the way back to the bedroom. He’s unsuccessful, Steve’s fast. “But holy shit this is more comparable to Nat’s place than mine.”

“Well I haven’t been to Nat’s place yet so I’ll just have to trust you on that one,” the blond laughs as he sets his boyfriend’s things down. “So, what do you want to do until we have to start getting ready for dinner?”

A wicked grin spreads across Bucky’s face and he rushes forward, picking Steve up and throwing him over his shoulder. “Oh I can think of a few things,” he says, dropping the giggling blond onto the bed.

 

*

 

Later that night Bucky finds himself getting nervous again as they get ready to go out for dinner.

“He just wants to meet you before Thanksgiving,” Steve says, meticulously styling his hair in the mirror. It’s got a real Brendon Urie vibe in a way that makes the little emo boy buried deep in Bucky’s heart squeal like a schoolgirl. “You know,” he goes on, “so he can talk to you more one-on-one.”

“You mean so he can give me the shovel talk?” Bucky replies with a nervous chuckle, pulling his hair up into a loose bun.

Steve laughs and rolls his eyes at him in the mirror, double-checking his outfit. “I mean so he can grill you,” he says. “But no shovel talk. Scout’s honor.” He holds up two fingers and it’s Bucky’s turn to laugh and roll his eyes.

“He could grill me at Thanksgiving, too,” he says, slipping an arm around Steve’s waist and spinning him around to plant a kiss on his lips. “As a matter of fact, I’m pretty sure everyone will be grilling me at Thanksgiving.”

“But it’s more intimate and scary this way,” Steve teases him when they part, walking two fingers up his boyfriend’s chest.

“That’s for fucking sure!” Bucky laughs and takes a step back. He holds out his arms and poses for a minute before spinning once. “I look okay? You think he’ll approve?” he asks.

“He’s going to love you,” Steve says, grabbing him by the front of his shirt and pulling him back for another kiss. “Now let’s go. I don’t like to be late,” he continues with a smirk, shoving lightly at the brunet’s chest.

Bucky grins and waggles his eyebrows. “I like it when you get bossy,” he teases with a wink.

Steve laughs loudly and rolls his eyes and just shoves him again.

 

As they approach the restaurant Bucky recognizes the couple waiting outside from some pictures on Steve’s various social media accounts. Bucky flashes a nervous grin and Steve squeezes his hand gently as they approach.

“Hey Sam, hey Riley,” he says, giving a little wave. “Guys, this is Bucky.”

“Nice to finally meet you,” Riley says with a wide, genuine smile and an unexpectedly Southern drawl as he holds out a hand to shake.

“You too,” Bucky replies. “Nice to meet you man,” he says to Sam as he takes his hand next.

“You too,” Sam replies, but he’s eyeing him just a little bit more than his husband had. Steve rolls his eyes and Riley nudges him lightly.

“Well, let’s not waste time out here,” Steve says with a chuckle, squeezing Bucky’s hand again. “I’m starved.”

They go inside and are seated immediately – a table in the back in a very exclusive-looking section up in a lofted area. Bucky remembers Steve saying that Riley was a chef. Maybe this is his restaurant? Well, either way, he’s not going to complain. It’s quieter up here and absolutely stunning, decorated with twinkling fairy lights. Wine is brought out without them even asking and, okay, he’s still not sure if this place is Riley’s or not, but he’s definitely got _some_ kind of hookup here.

They browse the menu and there’s no prices on anything. Bucky knows exactly what that means and the thought makes him a little sick. He can’t even fathom letting people he doesn’t even really know pay what’s probably going to be a minimum of twenty-five bucks just for his plate. Steve must sense his tension because a couple of seconds later his hand is on Bucky’s knee, thumb brushing over the fabric of his pants slowly. Bucky glances over at him and the blond flashes a small, understanding smile and a look that says _You might as well get used to it._

“So Steve says you’re a professor,” Sam says, almost like a question, once they’ve ordered. “English, right? What’s that like?”

“Yeah, mostly creative writing. But I also do some pre-reqs and gender and sexuality classes too,” Bucky replies. A dopey grin spreads across his face, the one that’s reserved for only two things – Steve and his job. “I love it. My kids are always great, the staff is great, administration is wonderful.”

“He also says you speak four languages including English? Parlez-vous français?” Riley asks, cutting his husband off from another question like he knows it’s about to be intrusive.

Bucky laughs and grins, shaking his head. “No, no French, unfortunately,” he says. “Other than English I speak Italian – that was my first language, actually. Most of the English I learned as a kid was from cartoons.” He chuckles at the thought. “I also speak ASL because one of my best friends is hard of hearing and Russian because another – his wife, actually – is…” he smirks a little and glances to Steve for confirmation, “ _very_ Russian.”

Steve laughs and nods his head at that. “I swear to god she works for the KGB or something,” he jokes.

“Sometimes I wonder,” Bucky agrees, laughing and shaking his head a little.

 

“So, Steve tells me you’re a chef,” Bucky says to Riley. The amazing food is gone and - at the other couple’s insistence - they’re now sharing a dessert while they finish up another bottle of wine. “What’s that like?”

Riley laughs and rolls his eyes. “Trying sometimes,” he says. “I’m a personal chef for celebrities, so the clients are kind of hit and miss, you know?” Bucky feels his eyes widen a little, impressed. “Some of them are great, kind and funny and real humble. Some are total assholes.”

“I bet you’ve got a _lot_ of stories,” Bucky says with a laugh.

“Oh god, like you wouldn’t imagine. I could write a book I bet,” the other man says with a wave of his hand and a smirk.

“Maybe not without getting sued,” Bucky jokes with a wink.

“You’ve got a point there,” Riley laughs. “I’ll just have to really change up the names for the assholes. Then they can’t sue me without revealing which stories are theirs.”

When the laughter dies down, Sam fixes Bucky with a calculating look and says, “You know, speaking of work, I couldn’t help but notice you referred to your students as ‘my kids’ earlier.”

“Yeah,” Bucky smiles, soft and fond. “I really care about them, you know? I’m there for them, for more than just the material. And especially in the human sexuality and gender studies classes, some of those kids are really struggling with who they are and things they’re feeling. Some professors might not give a shit, but I do.”

“Does it ever make you think about having your own?” Sam asks with a quirked brow.

“Oh my god Sam,” Steve hisses, his eyes widening as he gives his friend a pointed look.

Riley shoves his husband a little with a dramatic eye roll and starts scolding him in French.

“I’m sorry about him,” Steve says, blushing and only half-joking. “You don’t have to answer that.”

Sam gives Steve a pointed look right back and Bucky gets the feeling there’s at least a little more to him asking the question than just curiosity and general boyfriend grilling.

“It’s okay,” Bucky replies with a chuckle, running his hand along Steve’s thigh reassuringly. “I don’t mind. I think for some people it might, you know? ‘Oh I can’t wait to do this with my kids’ or whatever. But for me, it’s enough to help my students. I don’t really want kids of my own, especially not any time soon. I don’t know if I would go so far as to consider it a make or break thing, but, of course, that’s a discussion me and Steve will have to have when we get to that point.” He wraps an arm around Steve’s shoulders and presses a kiss to his cheek. And he can’t say for sure, but the sigh his boyfriend lets out sounds relieved.

 

*

 

On the third morning Bucky wakes up to an empty bed and the sound of Steve’s voice from the living room where his desk is set up. He glances at the clock and wonders who he’d be talking to this early. Maybe he’s skyping with Bruce? After all, they are officially starting work on that Avengers sequel game. And, yeah, Bruce only lives about 15 minutes away, but artists are weird and maybe Steve thought Bucky wouldn’t want him over (because Skyping is _totally_ different).

He climbs out of bed and throws on a pair of boxers for decency’s sake (not that Bruce will even be looking up from his work, if they’re even on video at all).

“Morning babe,” Steve coos as Bucky steps into the living room.

“Morning,” the brunet echoes, his face scrunching up in confusion at the sight in front of him. Steve’s phone is in some weird contraption that holds it above his desk while his very fancy, very expensive drawing tablet sits under it. So… not Bruce then. “How long’ve you been up?” he asks, pushing his hair out of his face.

“Like half an hour,” Steve replies with a shrug, delving right back in to whatever drawing he was working on. He pauses just a second to look at his phone screen then goes back to drawing again, chuckling as he says, “Shhh, you can’t just rat me out like that. Geez guys.”

Bucky’s face scrunches up even more as he makes his way to his boyfriend’s chair, squeezing his shoulders gently as he leans over and reads a slew of messages that all say some variation of ‘Ooh you liar! You’ve been streaming for an hour already!’

“You’re streaming on Insta?” Bucky asks, pressing a kiss to the top of Steve’s head. He gets a little hum of confirmation as he leans further over to see what his boyfriend is working on. Some demure looking boy with pale blue skin and ice crystals along his face and in his lashes, an ice crown atop his head and snowflakes in his hair. “I always wondered how you rigged your phone up for that. That’s cute,” he says, pointing to the drawing before ruffling the blond’s hair. “Have you eaten yet?”

Steve makes a soft noncommittal noise while a bunch of ‘no!’s pop up in the chat. A couple of ‘oooo is that your boyfriend?’s get mixed in too.

Steve laughs as he reads the messages. “Traitors, the whole lot of you,” he teases. “Yeah, that’s my boyfriend,” he confirms. The chat is instantly flooded with ‘show us!’ and ‘pics or it didn’t happen!’ and ‘his voice is hot’ and Bucky laughs and blushes. “Awh, look baby, I think you’re starting to develop your own fanbase,” Steve teases him. “You all know what he looks like, there’s pictures of us on my Instagram _and_ my Tumblr. And yes, his voice is very hot,” he adds, craning his neck to smirk up at Bucky and wink at him.

One person sends, ‘We don’t know what he looks like in the morning!’ and Bucky just laughs harder and shakes his head, the blush darkening on his cheeks as he makes his way into the kitchen. “French toast sound good?” he asks, then adds, “Oh my god you haven’t even made coffee yet you _heathen_.”

“French toast sounds heavenly,” Steve says, just loud enough to be heard from the other room. Bucky can hear him chuckling and muttering, “Okay, okay, you guys win,” as he starts the coffee and gets to work on breakfast.

When he brings a plate and a mug out and sets it on Steve’s desk, the blond is working on a new drawing. It’s just a sketch for now but Bucky recognizes himself in Steve’s style, hair messy and wearing an over-sized sweater and a flower crown.

“They said if I wouldn’t show them you, that I have to at least draw you,” Steve explains, twisting so he’s on his knees on the chair to lean up and press a kiss to his boyfriend’s lips.

Bucky laughs and slips a hand into Steve’s hair as he kisses him back. He strokes his fingers along the blond’s jaw as he pulls back. “My little artist,” he says fondly.

“My beautiful genius,” Steve replies dreamily, pecking his lips one last time before flipping back into the seat properly so he can get back to work. “Just let me finish this and then I’ll end the stream, okay?”

“No problem baby,” Bucky replies with a smile. He can’t help but think about how lucky he is to have met Steve, and how much he’s going to miss him and simple domesticity like this when he’s back in New York.

 

*

 

Thanksgiving morning Bucky wakes up _way_ too early. He’s careful not to wake his boyfriend as he climbs out of bed to start getting everything ready for the day. Steve’s little self-made family is about as big as Bucky’s own (eight people not including Steve and himself - a thought that makes him nervous as hell) and a turkey big enough to feed everyone is going to take all damn day to cook. At least Steve’s got a pretty decent-sized house. It’ll be less nerve-wracking than next year when hopefully Steve will come out to New York and they’ll all be squeezed into his apartment.

Before anything else, he starts the coffee. He’s not getting much of anything done without some caffeine in his system. As he waits for it to brew he leans against the kitchen counter and muses over the gorgeous view of the sun rising, light streaming through all those open windows. He grabs his phone from the counter and snaps an artsy picture, sending it to Natasha with a “Happy Thanksgiving<3”.

He’s half way through a cup of coffee and almost completely done preparing the turkey, the oven preheating, when Steve’s footsteps pad out from the bedroom earlier than Bucky had hoped.

“Mornin’,” the blond mumbles, rubbing an eye under his glasses.

“Mornin’,” Bucky chimes back as Steve wraps his arms around his waist from behind and nuzzles his cheek between his shoulder blades. “You still sleepy baby?” he asks.

Steve hums out a little confirmation and lets his eyes slip shut as he leans against his boyfriend.

“Well, the turkey’s almost ready to go in and then I was going to start on the dough for the rolls and _then_ I was gonna see what time it was to decide what I’m gonna do next,” the brunet rambles off his list, still working even with the smaller man attached to his back.

“You’re _homemaking_ the rolls?” Steve asks as incredulously as he can manage in his still-groggy state. Then he mumbles under his breath, “I’d wondered where you’d been hiding them.”

“Of course,” Bucky grins. “Since we don’t have to worry about the stuffing and mashed potatoes and all that, I knew I’d have time.”

“You do remember you’re the guest here, right?” Steve teases him, finally dragging himself away to get a cup of coffee. He throws two bagels in the toaster while he’s at it.

Bucky just laughs and shrugs. “I like cooking and baking,” he says as he finally gets the turkey in the oven. He turns to Steve and flashes a sheepish grin. “And maybe I wanted to impress Riley.”

 

The snacks are ready, rolls in the oven, turkey and ham perfectly on track, and Bucky’s just about to go hop in the shower. Steve – already showered, dressed, and ready to go - gazes around the kitchen, a soft smile on his face, as Bucky wraps his arms around his waist from behind. He presses a kiss to the top of his head before resting his chin there. He loves the way Steve fits, tucked right up into him there. Steve rests his arms over Bucky's and plays with his fingers mindlessly.

"Looks like we did a good job," he says.

"Looks like it," Bucky agrees.

There's a moment of silence between them and then Bucky sighs happily and squeezes his boyfriend gently. He presses a kiss behind the smaller man’s ear and nuzzles his nose against the skin, murmuring a soft, "I love you."

Steve freezes in his arms and Bucky doesn’t have to see his face to know how the blond’s eyes have widened.

_Fuck_ , he thinks. Sure they said the phrase a million times as friends, but they haven’t said it as a couple yet. It means something different now, carries a whole other weight with an entirely different set of implications. And Bucky had meant it, sure, with every fiber of his being.  But he hadn’t meant to say it now. Just yet. Like that.

He swallows hard, unsure of what to say next. He doesn’t want to apologize or take it back. He’d meant it, he means it, and he’s not sorry for that. Maybe he’s a little sorry for taking Steve off-guard like that though.

Steve turns in his arms and his face is unreadable as he smooths his hands down Bucky’s chest, brushing off some stray flour in the process. The older man opens his mouth to say… _something_ , but Steve cuts him off.

“Did you mean that,” he asks, “like it sounded like you meant it?”

Bucky purses his lips for a second and nods dumbly, searching his boyfriend’s face for any hint of what he’s feeling.

But then a grin breaks out on the blond’s face and he whispers, “Say it again.”

 

Steve’s in the living room working on finishing touches and Bucky’s just stepping out of the shower when the doorbell rings. Damn. He knew he should have gotten ready sooner, but he couldn’t until the rolls were in the oven and he wanted to let them rise just a _little_ bit longer.

Well, he guesses he’ll just have to skip his usual routine of trying a million different outfits on until he hates himself. He quickly slips into a pair of dark jeans and a button up with the top couple of buttons undone, throws his hair up into a pony tail, and makes his way out to the living room.

He actually finds himself a little relieved when he sees the only other people here are still Sam and Riley. They’re talking with Steve in quick, hushed voices just inside the kitchen and Bucky blushes a little, figuring he knows exactly what they’re talking about. Steve smacks Sam’s arm at something he just said and Bucky chuckles, drawing all eyes his way.

“Are you assaulting our guests?” he teases his boyfriend.

Steve giggles and flashes the most fake innocent smile Bucky’s ever seen. “Of course not,” he says, rubbing Sam’s arm where he just smacked him.

Sam opens his mouth – to say something snarky no doubt – but just then the doorbell rings. The door opens and two women walk in and Steve shouts, “Yaaaay!” over anything his friend might have said.

Bucky vaguely recognizes them from a couple pictures on Steve’s Instagram, remembers they’re married, but his mind is totally going blank on the names.

“Peg, Ange, this is Bucky,” Steve says, ushering his friends over to the small group by the kitchen. “Bucky, Peggy and Angie.”

Bucky smiles and shakes their hands. “It’s nice to meet you both,” he says with his sweetest smile.

“Nice to finally meet you too,” the brunette says with a lovely British accent.

“Likewise,” the blonde chimes, sounding distinctly New York.

“Here,” Bucky says, motioning for the plastic bag hanging from Peggy’s arm, “let me put that in the kitchen for you.”

“What a gentleman,” Peggy coos as she hands it over. “Let me join you.”

“Of course,” Bucky says with a charming smile, holding his free arm out to her.

She giggles and raises her eyebrows at her wife, looking impressed as she links her arm with his. “We’ll be right back my love,” she says and lets Bucky lead the way.

Once they’re in the kitchen she leans against the counter and watches him rearrange the dishes and check on the food. “So, how’s LA been treating you?” she asks.

“Good,” Bucky says, flashing her a smile. It’s more sincere this time, but also more nervous. “Good, yeah. It’s not New York or anything, but Stevie’s here so it’s almost as good,” he jokes.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so happy as he’s been with you,” Peggy says, an amused grin on her bright red lips.

Bucky feels himself blushing just in time for him to run out of excuses to puttz around. “That’s good to hear,” he says, tugging lightly on the hem of his shirt. “Because I’ve never been this happy either. I _really_ love him.”

“I hear you’ve told him as much quite recently,” she teases him. Looks like word gets around just as fast in this group as his own, huh?

He chuckles and nods. “Yeah, _very_ recently.”

“Well, he sure as hell deserves it,” she says and holds her arm out to him. “I look forward to getting to know you.”

“The feeling is mutual,” he replies and links his arm with hers, leading her back out of the kitchen.

Just as Bucky and Peggy make their way back into the living room the front door bangs open without any warning. Bucky practically jumps out of his skin. No one else, though, seems phased at all. And Bucky understands why when, five seconds later in swoops Tony Stark, followed by a dark-skinned man and a redheaded woman both rolling their eyes and giving each other a pointed look.

Bucky has met Tony all of once, but that was enough for him to figure out that Tony’s kind of just always like this. Hence him flying out from New York all for Thanksgiving with this particular bunch.

“Hey! Buckaroo! Nice to see you again!” Tony calls, grinning from ear to ear as he kicks off shoes and heads toward the group.

“You too,” Bucky replies, though he doesn’t exactly sound sure of himself.

“Guys, this is Steve’s new fella, Bucky” he grins at the man behind him carrying a huge paper bag full of food, Bucky’s sure. “Buckaroo, this is my fella,” he goes on, “he goes by Rhodey. And this is my sweet Pepper.” He flashes a cheesy grin to the redhead, who shoots him a flat, mildly amused look.

“Nice to meet you,” Rhodey says as he makes his way through the group and toward the kitchen to set the food down.

“It smells amazing in here Steve,” Pepper says, ignoring Tony and making her way around the group for hugs. “It’s so nice to see you again.”

“You too,” Steve replies with a wide smile. “And that is _all_ Bucky. He let me sleep in and everything.”

“Don’t spoil him too much,” Pepper teases Bucky with a wink. “It’s nice to meet you,” she says, shaking his hand as Tony makes his rounds, kissing everyone’s cheek as he goes. “I’ve heard all about you.”

“Likewise,” Bucky replies. “Food is just about done.”

“Glad to hear it,” she says with a soft laugh. “The drama queen wouldn’t let us have breakfast so we’re _starving_.”

“Sounds about right,” Peggy says with a snort.

“You know, I like it when you come around Tony,” Riley says with a grin, “they stop calling me the drama queen.”

“I do what I can,” Tony says with a low bow, perfectly proving the other man’s point.

Bucky can’t help but think that his friends are going to have to meet Steve’s soon. They’re going to get along almost _too_ well.

 

Bucky’s exhausted by the time everyone leaves that night. He doesn’t quite get the anxiety with strangers like Steve, but he was nervous about meeting his boyfriend’s friends, and it was a long day what with all the cooking and way too much eating. He doesn’t even want to think about cleaning up. The day was great, the food was amazing, but now he’s ready for bed. He groans as he stretches and tugs his shirt over his head without even unbuttoning it.

“You ready for bed?” Steve asks, apparently reading his mind. He stretches and tries to hide a yawn behind a hand as he kicks off his jeans.

“God yes,” Bucky mumbles, draping himself over his boyfriend. “I was so hoping you wouldn’t want to clean tonight.”

Steve chuckles and tries to support the larger man, who’s jokingly putting almost all of his weight on the blond. “You got up early and let me sleep in while you started the turkey,” he says. “I would never do that to you.” He manages to half-drag them close enough to the bed then shoves the brunet off of him onto the mattress.

Bucky lands with an ‘oomph’ and laughs, catching the back of Steve’s knee with his foot and tugging him down on top of him. “You’re the best boyfriend ever,” he teases the smaller man, peppering his face with kisses.

“Oh my god shut up,” Steve giggles, pushing the other man’s face away gently as he rolls off of his chest. He sighs happily as he curls into his side. “I love you so much,” he whispers.

Bucky’s smile softens and reaches a hand up to run through his hair. “I love you too,” he says. “So much.”

“Do you have to leave?” Steve asks, pouting as he looks up at his boyfriend.

“I’ve gotta get back to my classes eventually,” Bucky replies with a chuckle. “Thanksgiving break only lasts so long. But maybe I can just not take on any summer classes this year. Then I could come stay with you for most of the summer, if that’s something you’d want.”

Steve lights up at that, rushing up to press a proper kiss to his lips. “That would be amazing,” he says.

Bucky laughs and steals another kiss. “I’ll see what I can do,” he says. “For now, though, sleep.”

Steve yawns again and nods, snuggling into the brunet’s side more. He presses a kiss to his jaw and lets out a happy hum. “Goodnight,” he mumbles.

“Sweet dreams,” Bucky replies, pressing a kiss to his forehead. And as he drifts off to sleep he can’t help but think that he’s the luckiest man in the world.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you _so_ much for reading!! I really hope you all enjoyed it!! ^_^ Chapter two will be up soon!
> 
> Kudos/comments/etc are sososo very appreciated!<3
> 
> And, as always, you can find me on [tumblr](http://worrisomeme.tumblr.com)<3 <3 <3


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